Motor Almanac

Ford / Taurus / 2016

2016 Ford Taurus

Family: Taurus · filed with NHTSA as TAURUS

Summary

  • Of the 75 complaints that name a component, 40% concern Driver Assistance (30).
  • These are complaint counts, not failure rates: they are not divided by how many cars were sold, because no public source reports U.S. sales by model year.
  • Not enough history to compare this year with the rest of its generation.
  • 4 recalls filed for this model year.
  • No federal defect investigations cover this model year.

At a glance

Owner complaints
86
Recalls
4
Investigations
0
NCAP overall
5 of 5 stars
Combined MPG
19–23
Annual fuel cost
$2,700–$3,300
Median mileage at complaint
60,000 mi (n = 48)
Crashes / fires / injuries / deaths
4 / 1 / 3 / 0

What owners report

Driver Assistance

30 complaints · 40% of complaints that name a component · median 64,000 mi (n = 17)

Owner report The contact owns a 2016 Ford Taurus. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 25V69500 (Back Over Prevention); however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. While reversing, the…
Owner report The contact owns a 2016 Ford Taurus. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 25V695000 (Back Over Prevention); however, the part to complete the recall repair was unavailable. The local dealer was contacted, and it was confirmed that the part was not available. The contact stated the manufacturer ex…

Engine

14 complaints · 19% of complaints that name a component · median 45,000 mi (n = 11)

Owner report The contact owns a 2016 Ford Taurus. The contact stated while driving at various speeds, the engine overheated. Additionally, the contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the engine overheated. The contact pulled over to the side of the road, added coolant to the vehicle, and allowed the engine to coo…
Owner report I have learned there is a known issue with the 3.5liter twin turbo V6 motor Water Pump. The "cyclone motor" design by Ford has a known problem with water pump leaking and must be replaced, costs are typically $4,500 as the engine has a known design flaw in that the water pump was placed Inside the motor causing a high …

Steering

9 complaints · 12% of complaints that name a component · median 28,300 mi (n = 5)

Owner report The contact owns a 2016 Ford Taurus. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle experienced a loss of power steering assist. No warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, who determined that there was a loose steering bolt. The dealer performed an undisclosed rep…
Owner report The contact owns a 2016 Ford Taurus. The contact stated that the vehicle failed to start after several attempts, and the battery was replaced by an independent mechanic. The contact stated that soon after the battery replacement, while attempting to make a U-turn, the steering wheel seized with the “Power Steering Assi…

13% of complaints name no specific component and are left out of the shares above.

Across the generation (2010–2019)

To compare years fairly, each year is counted over the same span: complaints received up to two calendar years after its model year. A year is compared only when that span is over and it holds at least 50 complaints.

Model yearAll complaintsFirst three yearsNote
201020462
201118747not compared
20127918not compared
201359153
201423533not compared
201528335not compared
20168610not compared
20174412not compared
2018526not compared
2019182not compared

Recalls

Whether a recall has been fixed on a specific car depends on its VIN; check it at nhtsa.gov/recalls.

25V695000 · BACK OVER PREVENTION: SENSING SYSTEM: CAMERA

Filed 2025-10-13 · 1,448,655 vehicles

Defect: Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2015-2019 Flex, 2015 Explorer, Lincoln MKT, Lincoln MKZ, 2015-2016 C-Max, Escape, Taurus, 2016 Fusion, 2018-2019 Taurus, 2019 Lincoln MKT, Fiesta, and 2020 Mustang vehicles. The rearview camera may display a distorted, intermittent, or blank image when the vehicle is in reverse.

Risk: A rearview camera that fails to properly display an image can reduce the driver’s view behind the vehicle, increasing the risk of a crash.

Remedy: Dealers will inspect and replace the rearview camera as necessary, free of charge. This will be a phased campaign, with the remedy becoming available in different phases based on model and model years. Interim letters notifying owners of the safety risk were mailed on October 25, 2025. Additional letters will be mailed once the final remedy is available on each phase. Mustang owner notification letters were mailed January 2, 2026. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 25SA9. Vehicle Identification Numbers (VINs) involved in this recall became searchable on NHTSA.gov on October 14, 2025.

25V611000 · STRUCTURE:EXTERIOR TRIM

Filed 2025-09-12 · 101,944 vehicles

Defect: Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2016-2019 Taurus vehicles. The driver and front passenger B-Pillar door trim may detach while driving.

Risk: Door trim that detaches while driving can create a road hazard, increasing the risk of a crash.

Remedy: Dealers will repair or replace the B-pillar trim as necessary, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed February 20, 2026. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 25S91.

20V072000 · SUSPENSION:REAR

Filed 2020-02-10 · 211,207 vehicles

Defect: Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2013-2018 Lincoln MKT and Ford Flex and Taurus vehicles with the Police Interceptor or SHO Performance Pack. The rear suspension toe links may fracture due to stress on the rear suspension.

Risk: A fractured rear toe link will cause a sudden change in vehicle handling and increase the risk of a crash.

Remedy: Ford will notify owners, and dealers will replace the rear suspension toe links, free of charge. Remedy parts are not currently available. Owners were notified about the recall on March 3, 2020. A second notice will be mailed when remedy parts become available, which is currently expected to be the end of September 2020. The recall began October 28, 2020. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332 or Lincoln customer service at 1-800-521-4140. Ford's number for this recall is 20S04.

16V925000 · ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING:ENGINE:GASOLINE:TURBO/SUPERCHARGER

Filed 2016-12-22 · 1,163 vehicles

Defect: Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain model year 2016 Ford Taurus, 2016-2017 Ford Flex, Lincoln MKT, 2017 Ford Explorer and Ford Explorer Police Interceptor Utility vehicles equipped with 3.5L GTDI engines. Improperly brazed turbocharger oil supply tubes may leak oil on engine components.

Risk: An oil leak, in the presence of an ignition source, increases the risk of a fire.

Remedy: Ford will notify owners, and dealers will inspect, and if necessary, replace the turbocharger oil supply tubes, free of charge. The recall began on January 31, 2017. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 16S46.

Federal investigations

None on file.

Engines and fuel economy

VersionEngineTransmissionDriveCityHwyCombinedFuel cost / yr
Taurus AWD3.5L 6cylAutomatic (S6)All-Wheel Drive162419$3300
Taurus AWD3.5L 6cylAutomatic (S6)All-Wheel Drive172419$3300
Taurus AWD FFV3.5L 6cyl FFVAutomatic (S6)All-Wheel Drive172419$3300
Taurus FWD2.0L 4cylAutomatic (S6)Front-Wheel Drive202923$2700
Taurus FWD3.5L 6cylAutomatic (S6)Front-Wheel Drive182721$2950
Taurus FWD FFV3.5L 6cyl FFVAutomatic (S6)Front-Wheel Drive182721$2950

Fuel cost is EPA's estimate at the fuel prices of its last update, not today's.

Crash test ratings (NCAP)

VariantOverallFrontalSideRollover
2016 Ford Taurus 4 DR AWD★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★☆
2016 Ford Taurus 4 DR FWD★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★☆

Service bulletins

Ford issued 111 service bulletins listed against this model year, most often about electrical system.

A bulletin tells dealers how to fix a known condition. It is not a recall and not a defect finding. Most bulletins cover several model years at once, so one listed here may not be specific to this year. The number of bulletins tracks how long and how widely a model was sold, so it is not a measure of reliability.

DateComponentSummary
2026-09-30POWER TRAIN25E10-S1 Owner letter
2026-07-02UNKNOWN OR OTHERNEW VEHICLE DELIVERY HOLD - Emissions Recall 25E10 - Supplement #1 Certain 2018-2020 Model Year F-150 Vehicles With 3.3L Engines and 2016-2019 Model Year Explorer, Taurus, and Flex Vehicles With 3.5L Engines Powertrain Control Module (PCM) …
2026-02-24UNKNOWN OR OTHERFord and Lincoln vehicles equipped with wired keyless entry keypad systems and accessory wireless keyless entry keypad systems may or may not come with a wallet card containing the master code. Unlike the integrated wired keypad, the access…
2025-11-26ELECTRICAL SYSTEMThis article supersedes TSB 24-2165 to update the TSB Service Procedure. Some vehicles listed in the Model statement above may exhibit various SYNC performance related concerns including but not limited to:  Display operation concerns  Na…
2025-11-12POWER TRAINSome 2015-2021 Ford and Lincoln vehicles may exhibit an illuminated MIL with diagnostic trouble codes (DTCs) P0011, P0012, P0014, P0015, P0016, P0017, P0018, P0019, P0021, P0022, P0024 and/or P0025. Pinpoint test HK in the Powertrain Contro…
2024-10-10UNKNOWN OR OTHERWhile performing a transmission repair on some 2012-2024 Ford and Lincoln vehicles, a transmission seal kit may be on backorder due to supply chain interruptions. …
2024-05-27UNKNOWN OR OTHERThis article supersedes TSB 21-2175 to update the TSB Service Procedure. Some 2016 MKS, 2016-2017 Navigator, 2016-2018 F-150/Focus/C-MAX/Edge/Fiesta/MKX/Transit Connect/Mustang, 2017-2018 Continental/Fusion/MKZ, 2017-2019 Explorer, 2016-201…
2024-04-24EQUIPMENTAll accessory stick-on keyless entry keypads come with a wallet card containing the master code. If the accessory keypad was factory installed, this card will be placed in the glove box and should be handed to the vehicles owner during ini…
2024-03-06ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLINGFor 2015-2024 Ford and Lincoln vehicles equipped with turbocharged engines and customer concern of an engine oil leak, refer to Workshop Manual (WSM), Section 303-00 for oil leak inspection and testing methods. Ford has evaluated turbocharg…
2024-03-01POWER TRAINDuring service and repair requiring removal and replacement of a crankshaft bolt and/or crankshaft damper, achieving proper torque of the crankshaft pulley bolt is critical. Incorrect torque may allow the bolt to loosen resulting in the tim…

How to read this page

Complaint counts are not failure rates. A model that sells more cars draws more complaints, and owners file more often after news coverage or a recall. That is why this page compares a model year only with other years of the same generation, never with other models.

Each complaint is counted once, even when it names several components; a complaint that names several systems appears under each of them. Owner reports are quoted as filed and have not been verified by NHTSA or by us.

Every model year of this Taurus, including the ones without a page of their own, is listed on the Ford Taurus model page.

Sources

  • NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation: complaints, recalls and investigations (bulk files, data as of 2026-10-28).
  • NHTSA New Car Assessment Program: crash test ratings.
  • U.S. EPA / DOE fueleconomy.gov: engines, transmissions and fuel economy.

MotorAlmanac is independent and not affiliated with NHTSA, EPA or any manufacturer. This page summarises public records; it is not a mechanical inspection. Before buying a used car, check its VIN for open recalls and have it inspected.